Edoardo Ballerini
A versatile American actor and masterful audiobook narrator whose voice brings complex characters, from mobsters to literary heroes, to vivid life.
Born 1970 (age 56)·American actor, narrator, writer, and film director·Birthday: March 20·Generation X
Biography
Edoardo Ballerini possesses a chameleonic quality, equally convincing as a volatile mobster on television and a refined narrator in your earbuds. While screen audiences may know him best as the strung-out, tragic Corky Caporale on The Sopranos or the intense chef in Dinner Rush, his most decorated work happens off-camera. Ballerini is a giant in the world of audiobook narration, a two-time Audie Award winner for Best Male Narrator whose voice has given texture to hundreds of novels. His directorial debut, Good Night Valentino, premiered at Sundance, hinting at a creative mind interested in storytelling from all angles. This blend of on-screen grit and off-screen vocal artistry defines a career built on meticulous craft and deep character immersion.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
Edoardo was born in 1970, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Edoardo Was Born
The biggest hits of 1970
#1 Movie
Love Story
Best Picture
Patton
#1 TV Show
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Edoardo's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1970Born
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1975Started school
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1983Became a teenager
Internet adopts TCP/IP, creating the modern internet
Gas: $1.16/galHome: $57,700Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Every Breath You Take" — The PoliceBest Picture: Terms of Endearment
1986Could drive
Challenger disaster; Chernobyl nuclear meltdown
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $66,600Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"That's What Friends Are For" — Dionne & FriendsBest Picture: Platoon
1988Could vote
Pan Am Flight 103 bombed over Lockerbie
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $74,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Faith" — George MichaelBest Picture: Rain Man
1991Turned 21
Soviet Union dissolves; World Wide Web goes public
Gas: $1.14/galHome: $82,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" — Bryan AdamsBest Picture: The Silence of the Lambs
2000Turned 30
Y2K passes without incident; contested Bush-Gore election
Gas: $1.51/galHome: $119,600Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Breathe" — Faith HillBest Picture: Gladiator
2010Turned 40
Deepwater Horizon oil spill; iPad launched
Gas: $2.79/galHome: $147,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Tik Tok" — KeshaBest Picture: The King's Speech
2020Turned 50
COVID-19 pandemic shuts down the world
Gas: $2.17/galHome: $248,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Blinding Lights" — The WeekndBest Picture: Nomadland
2026Age 56 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Won the Audie Award for Best Male Narrator twice, in 2013 for 'Beautiful Ruins' and 2019 for 'Watchers'.
- Portrayed the memorable recurring character Corky Caporale on the landmark HBO series The Sopranos.
- Starred as the passionate chef Duncan in the critically acclaimed independent film Dinner Rush.
- Directed the short film Good Night Valentino, which premiered at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival.
- Co-authored the story 'The Angel of Rome' in Jess Walter's 2021 collection of the same name.
Did You Know?
He is a certified sommelier and has a deep knowledge of wine.
He narrated the entire 'Moby-Dick' for an audiobook edition, a performance lasting over 21 hours.
He lived in Italy for several years as a child and is fluent in Italian.
He has narrated audiobooks for authors including Dean Koontz, James Patterson, and Jess Walter.
“The voice is the most intimate instrument an actor has.”
